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The Tribune

Volume:116 No.176, SEPTEMBER 6TH, 2019

Established 1903

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Friday, September 6, 2019

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WEEKEND: ARTISTS SHARE PICTURES OF HOPE AFTER DORIAN

DEATH TOLL MAY BE ‘STAGGERING’

Sands warns final bodycount could be horrifying

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net HEALTH Minister Dr Duane Sands has expressed fears that the official death toll from Hurricane Dorian could reach “staggering” proportions.

He said the toll, officially at 30 up to press time, was already higher than officials expected.

“Let me say that I believe the number will be staggering,” Dr Sands said as a guest on 96.9FM’s “The Revolution”. “…I have never lived through anything like this and I don’t want to live through anything like this again.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis said the government is focusing on a large-scale evacuation plan for storm victims as many people come to grips with Hurricane Dorian’s massive destruction. The evacuation plan, he said, was expected to be made public at some point today.

As for how the government plans to handle growing death numbers, Dr Sands insisted they were well equipped.

“We have the capacity,” he said. “We have an army of public health medical teams and environmental health teams to deal with dead animals, to deal with water contamination and to deal with dead bodies.

“We have morticians moving into Abaco and they will be a team of morticians to handle the remains of those in Grand Bahama.

We’re not doing this on the basis of an unknown script. We are following the advice and guidance of international best practices in conjunction with the Pan American Health Organisation and the World Health Organisation,” Dr Sands said.

While the government will need to hastily formalise its evacuation strategy as conditions in the affected areas will continue to deteriorate, Dr Minnis stressed SEE PAGE SEVEN

A SCENE of devastation in Abaco after Hurricane Dorian.

Photo: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff

‘We witnessed Dorian from start to finish.

The devastation, the bodies, the looting.’

The Tribune’s Rashad Rolle and photographer Terrel Carey give their incredible account: ‘Inside the monster’

AN emotional reunion in Abaco after the storm.

PHOTO: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune staff

FULL COVERAGE OF THE LATEST STORIES OF SURVIVAL AND RESCUE OPERATION –PAGES 2-9

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

PAGE 2, Friday, September 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

INSIDE THE MONSTER

‘We witnessed Dorian The devastation, the I

T TOOK little more than an hour for vast swathes of Abaco to be destroyed.

That’s how long the most ferocious part of Hurricane Dorian blasted the island, tearing down buildings, sending storm surges across the island and killing many of the inhabitants.

The Tribune’s team myself and photographer Terrel W Carey Sr - had arrived on Friday ahead of the storm, and we thought we were prepared for the worst. We weren’t. No one could be.

We arrived with essential supplies, batteries and back-ups, and with accommodation booked in the Abaco Beach Resort whose general manager expressed complete confidence that it was utterly prepared. He said there was a detailed plan for how to cope with the storm - guests would stay in their rooms, and if the storm reached category three, they would be invited to stay in the Below Deck area, a spacious area with sturdy steel shutters. This storm reached category five, ripping those shutters off and leaving guests watching in fear as windows bulged inwards ready to burst.

We arrived to find a resort full of experts, insurance assessors, foreign media and high-ranking

They went in thinking they were well prepared for Hurricane Dorian - but it turned into a week of hell for the reporting team from The Tribune, trapped inside Abaco first through the passage of the deadly storm itself and then trying to find a way out of an island cut off from the outside world.

Reporter RASHAD ROLLE - joined on the island by photographer TERREL W CAREY SR - relives his experience inside an island affected by death, destruction, looting and people trying to find a way to get through the storm. members of the community, staying at what is regarded as the top hotel in Abaco.

At first, it was quiet with the approaching storm missing its estimated arrival time. I stood outside my room, watching the sky and thinking it was going to amount to nothing.

But things changed as it began to pick up intensity. At about 9am, you could hear the sounds of the winds swirling. Peeking out through the canvas covering the balcony outside our room, we could see trees beginning to twist and bend, and the waves beginning to pick up.

The sky grew dark. There was no blue. There was no sun. My photographer partner, Terrel, called it unreal.

PEOPLE had to wade through high water following the storm including some people seeking refuge at the Abaco Beach Resort after their own shelters had been compromised.

We were in room 205, counting the time as the storm built up. I spent the time on my phone and my laptop, keeping up to date with the progress of the storm and messaging people back home.

An hour later, we began to see signs that our setting was truly getting out of control.

Rain and leaves began to blast through the crevices of the hotel room and the bathroom doors.

The wind was louder than ever. It sounded like the moment a vacuum is turned on, swirling all around you.

At this point, the winds were more than 200mph in gusts, we later learned.

The canvas outside the room was flapping uncontrollably - by this point when we looked out all you could see was gray, with occasional glimpses of trees bending under the force of the storm.

Then came more water.

We were on the second of four floors in the building and suddenly water was seeping in under the door.

We grabbed towels and tried to block the flow, but it just kept coming. At the same time, water started dripping from the light fixtures throughout the room.

Water even started dripping down the wall.

The fire alarm went off - and that’s when we got scared, worrying if something was on fire. We feared it was a message to evacuate the building - but in the middle of a category five hurricane, we were unsure whether we should leave the room or not.

Even so, at this point, with electricity still on, we began to fear we could get

RESIDENTS trying to get through flooded areas en route to Marsh Harbour during the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.

Photos: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff In the middle of it all, the room was continuing electrocuted. I pulled out the plugs from the televi- there was a sudden loud to get higher and higher. It sion and the refrigerator. bang - peeping through the seemed like every time you A fellow guest later told hole in the door, we could turned water was spewing us that he was watching see the metal railing out- from some new spot.

Darold Miller on the televi- side broken and lying on I was sitting on my bed sion during the storm and the walkway. These were wondering what we were sparks began to fly from it solid metal poles snapped going to do when I saw and he had to put out the by the sheer power of the sunlight. wind. We began to imagine fire.

I thought this was the Another hour later, we the worst if we had to leave moment to make an escape lost all communication the room, seeing what the so I opened the door and it through BTC. That was the storm had done to metal was catastrophic what I saw. last our colleagues would and picturing what it could To the right of me, the hear from us directly in do to us. roof by the stairway had By then, the water inside fallen in on top of the days.

A DOG seeking shelter on a roof in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.

BUILDINGS were left simply shattered by the force of the storm.

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, September 6, 2019, PAGE 3

INSIDE THE MONSTER

from start to finish. bodies, the looting.’

SHATTERED wreckage in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian on Abaco.

A DOOR is turned into a makeshift boat after the storm. Photos: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff

RESIDENTS from the Mudd cleaning clothes outside the Bahamas Government Complex. downed railing, so there was wooden debris stacked up upon one another mostly blocking the entrance up the stairs and out to that part of the complex.

To the left of me were the people coming out of their rooms, dressed in short pants and the most casual clothing, fumbling with their belongings in tow.

At that point, it wasn’t clear to me that any of them knew where they were going to go.

I remember grabbing our belongings and going around the back of the resort complex when I saw a fellow news colleague who told me he was just coming to get us as they had made their escape just a little earlier.

It was frantic. People were panicking. I saw Edison Key, former Central and South Abaco MP, slowly walking to the designated safety spot at the Below Decks area. A reporter from an ABC affiliate was talking to her bosses on a satellite phone, telling them what she saw was horrible and the worst thing she had ever experienced.

This was the eye of the storm - and everyone knew that we only had a limited time before the hurricane would resume just as strong.

Even so, from the destruction that we saw during the calm of the eye, it was clear that Abaco had suffered devastating amounts of damage.

The island was drastically changed, with flooding everywhere and buildings ripped apart by the storm.

Even the resort itself - said to be capable of surviving the worst - had parts of its roof, doors and windows ripped off.

We went out to the entrance area and, while stunned by the flooding, we heard people screaming “help” in the distance. That was the first really traumatising moment for me.

We could see in the

distance a group - per- Reuters photographer on haps a family - clinging the second floor and sought on a branch of a tree and shelter. screaming for assistance.

Later, we learned that Someone with us started the shutters at Below Deck waving and shouting at had been ripped off by the them, “How many?”. A storm, and guests described distant voice shouted back the window warping “Five”. That prompted a inwards like a bow and how mad dash to get kayaks they feared it would shatter said to be at the back of the at any moment. resort but we Terrel were unable ‘Again, some water decided to to get them. began to come wait the We heard storm out later that into the room in our old someone else and I was sitting room, while I had come to there wondering joined media rescue them colleagues but we never what was going to Theodore verified this happen, hearing Elliot and and it was a the wind howl Meeko Bert sign of the from Eyewitimpact of the and hearing loud ness News storm. and the masclashing sounds Then came outside. The sounds seuse.

The the refueye was passgees - people were so loud we ing - so we from the wondered if they set about neighboursecuring the were the yachts ing Regattas room.

We complex seek- from the shore tied a rope ing shelter crashing inland. I around the after their canvas to own struc- sat there in fear that secure it and ture had at any moment the piled furcollapsed. niture up canvas would pop They came against the off as it had done wading glass doors. through chest in other rooms The mashigh water to and the glass door seuse told get to safety. us her expeThere was a would break, the rience at family includ- room would be Regattas, ing a woman compromised and which made carrying a us a lot more three-month- we would have to worried. old baby make a run for it.’

She did not through believe the debris. There room would was a woman walking with hold up and I was genuinely an elderly blind man. There afraid at this point. was also a masseuse carryAgain, some water began ing her pet dog. to come into the room and I Along with them, we was sitting there wondering were urged by the manager what was going to happen, to seek shelter in the Below hearing the wind howl Deck area - but the mas- and hearing loud clashing seuse expressed concern sounds outside. The sounds that it was on the ground were so loud we wondered floor and facing the direc- if they were the yachts from tion the storm would be the shore crashing inland. I coming back from. We sat there in fear that at any argued frantically over moment the canvas would what to do - and decided pop off as it had done in to head back upstairs. We other rooms and the glass grabbed our belongings door would break, the room and went to a room of a would be compromised and

AN EMOTIONAL moment with a reunion during the aftermath of the storm. we would have to make a run for it.

I sat on the floor zoning out. People were talking around me but I was unable to take it in. I spent some of that time on the floor wondering if I would be able to function properly in an escape. As I was playing it in my mind, I was worried that if the room was compromised, I wouldn’t be able to react quickly enough to do what was needed to survive.

There came a moment, though - about two hours in to this second blast - when we collectively felt that if we had come through this so far, then we were going to make it.

And make it we did. The storm died down slightly and we ventured out when Terrel knocked on the door.

When we came out, the scene was even more apocalyptic than it had been before. All the cars sustained significant damage, their windows blown open with the debris that had flown in. Even more trees had toppled. Even more of

the roof had come off.

Eventually, we came out and tried to make contact with the outside world.

After that, we returned to our rooms and slept as best we could with the sound of the ongoing storm raging on around us. My God, I thought, this was a long storm. But we had survived.

AFTERMATH: DAY 1

Morning came with a mixture of relief and dread at what we might find.

We walked around the compound to see the impact. Our rental car was

destroyed. The windows were broken into and the engine was seized up. Each of us separated to look around.

Everywhere I could see was destruction. It was like what I had seen during the eye times five.

Terrel went walking to the government complex - about 45 minutes away to see if there was a route through. He came back for me later, having injured his foot on a nail but having found a path to the complex.

CONTINUES ON PAGE FOUR

PAGE 4, Friday, September 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

INSIDE THE MONSTER

GOODS being taken away in a shopping trolley after the storm. from page three He had seen the aftermath of people looting.

Stores were empty - and he had seen a man loading a Yamaha engine for a boat onto a dolly. When challenged on why he was taking it, he said “Because I found it.”

Just behind him, there was a group of men carrying a bright yellow motorbike from the Yamaha store.

The steel door of a clothing store was beaten down and everything inside had been taken. It was the start of a great deal of looting to come in the following days.

We decided to relocate to the government complex.

It turned out to be a bad decision.

The walk felt like we were in a post-apocalyptic movie. Everything was unrecognisable. Debris was strewn across the road.

The road was obstructed,

with cars, yachts, glass, downed power lines. We had to go through houses and businesses to find our way through.

It was a treacherous journey - walking on debris, keeping your eyes down so you didn’t step on a nail, walking through people’s houses and climbing over appliances. It was raining.

The wind was heavy.

I wrapped my bag in a big plastic bag and taped it heavily and that made navigating even more difficult. I waded through water with my suitcase in one hand and a bag of noodles in the other.

At one point, we saw a man coming the other way with a raincoat on and carrying a shotgun. He didn’t even acknowledge us as he walked by.

We passed Commonwealth Bank with its interior gone - the only thing left standing being its safe. Family Guardian’s

building was destroyed, and the Conch Inn - originally recommended to us as a place to say - was reduced to rubble on the ground.

There was a dog sitting on BTC’s roof.

One of the most striking scenes was a yacht inland with a truck completely inside it as if it was parked there.

Eventually, I saw a car driving in the distance. As we got closer, we saw it was a law enforcement vehicle and defence force officers were getting supplies and putting them in the back of a truck. We asked them to give us a ride.

They took us the rest of the way to the government complex - where we walked into a scene of chaos.

It was filled with people, distressed and seeking refuge. It included a lot of Haitians and other residents from The Mudd area which was completely wiped out by the storm.

A FAMILY mourns the loss of a daughter who was left behind in the Mudd.

LASHAN MCINTOSH, whose eight-year-old son Lachino died in the floods after Hurricane Dorian.

We went straight to the him, unable to swim. A We rode along with police, command centre - where woman walked by scream- who took diesel to the store we found Foreign Affairs ing because her 21-year-old to try to refuel the generaMinister Darren Henfield. daughter had died in The tor. We rode in the bucket As soon as we walked in, Mudd. An official who had of a tractor being driven by we heard a police officer gone into The Mudd ahead police across debris to the telling the story of a man of the storm to urge people store. he found dead on a tree, to evacuate - Pastor Wilson Even as we were drivwho he couldn’t get down Isnord later told us that ing, we saw people coming because rigor mortis had everyone there had a story with trolleys full of items; already set in and his hands of losing someone. sodas, Gatorades, liquor, As we walked through hot patties, everything you were gripped tight to the the halls, you could hear can imagine. We came to an tree.

We quickly realised that people recounting stories. area where there were cars coming here had been You could hear them talk- on the roads and there were a mistake. There was ing about how their roof fell lots of people. It was the nowhere to rest. It was off, about how this one got Save-A-Lot warehouse and swept away, about how that people had bored a hole filled with people.

Around us, we heard the one got left behind. through the wall and were Kevin Altidor, a profes- looting. stories of survivors. There was a firefighter who said sional basketball player There were people walkhe had been trying to get in Europe, was also in the ing through water with through flood waters with complex and he said his trolleys, there was a man his two daughters, but nephew, Brenden Dion on a door he had turned they got pulled away from Altidor, spent the hurri- into a canoe with a stick in cane on a tree, where he his hand pushing himself had been placed by his on. They were all going to stepfather who went back the store. The whole place to save more - and did was chaotic. Looting had not return. He also had a become a way of life. few friends who died in a After we came away from church nearby, and he knew the Aliv store, we went several people who waited to see The Mudd. As we out the monster storm in walked toward the Mudd, bushes. When he went to we saw a family reunite. the Pigeon Peas to look for It was a very emotional his clothes, he found a stack moment. Theirs was a surof about nine high-powered prise reunion. One half of guns and alerted the police. the family had stayed at One man - whose preg- the hotel with us and had nant wife lost her mother been going back and forth in the storm - said the water looking for the other half. in the Pigeon Peas area They had been going back had gone from three feet and forth in a truck when to 30 feet in less than five they saw them and it was a minutes. heartrending reunion. One Exhausted, we tried woman was pouring with to find somewhere in the tears as she hugged her complex to sleep, and were missing relatives. She was given a spot in the cashier’s talking and crying so much cage in the Road Traffic about how she was conDepartment without elec- vinced she would never see tricity where we spent a them again. restless, uncomfortable We continued to The night. By that time, we were Mudd. We had been told it delirious, and got through and the Pigeon Peas were the night the best we could. gone, but we hadn’t seen it

for ourselves until now. It was just rubble. You could see a couple of dead dogs The next day, we started right away. We saw people to venture out. trying to make their way We headed to an Aliv through the rubble, they store in the hope of get- told us to come and see a ting communication out. dead body. That was the

THE WRECKAGE of a boat thrown ashore by the force of Hurricane Dorian.

Photos: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff

AFTERMATH, DAY 2

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, September 6, 2019, PAGE 5

INSIDE THE MONSTER

PEOPLE trying to evacuate from Abaco at the Sandy Point airstrip. first dead body we saw. It was a woman, covered with wood and debris, swelling up from the water. It remained there.

We left to go to a church where we were told there were dead bodies. It was an unfinished Seventh-Day Adventist Church. Pastor Isnord told us later that eight people had gone into that building, evacuated during the storm, and the roof collapsed on them.

We saw three bodies, but it was unclear if the other five people made it out. I saw one body of a man, whose leg was bent up to his nose, while his blood was almost purple. It was beyond horrible.

A second body of a man was turned on its belly and you could see the stones of the roof on top of him. I didn’t see the third myself - there’s only so much you can take seeing dead bodies up close, especially in that kind of undignified environment.

We returned to the complex, where we remained for the rest of the day.

AFTERMATH, DAY 3

We had enough. We were still in the government complex, but living conditions were deteriorating. People had to pee in cups or use bushes as toilets.

One official warned to wash feet well because people were urinating or excreting on the floor. Top government officials on the island did the best they could to maintain some order.

At last, however, there were signs of people coming to our aid. Helicopters were flying over every five minutes. Supplies and food were brought in, with an aid group from California also aiming to bring in doctors and resources to help people.

As we came out of the area we had been sleeping in, there was a woman having a medical event - thought to be a diabetesrelated problem. We later found out that she had died.

At least four people died at the government complex.

We left the complex and headed to the Marsh Harbour Clinic. It was full of people. It had turned into both a shelter and a clinic.

People were sleeping inside - there were mattresses in the clinic. It seemed even more packed than the government complex. It had a terrible smell.

Again, we heard more stories from people about their traumatic experiences.

One man with an injury to his leg broke down in tears as he told us what he had gone through. Another man, Captain Brian Adderley, sustained an injury to his foot while swimming from Boat Harbour Marina on Bay Street to Dove Plaza on Don Mckay Blvd, where he helped Dr George Charite escape rising water.

A nurse said she had initially stayed at the Abaco Central Primary School

shelter but the roof came off. She began praying to God to save her. She said she told God “Save me, I will work as hard as I can to save everyone else.”

She had already been working three days straight when we met her, and she cried as we interviewed her.

She told us how she had vomited the night before because she wasn’t getting enough food.

There were not many medics at the clinic, but the ones who were worked extraordinarily hard. Some of them cried when a helicopter came to relocate them to New Providence because they didn’t want to be separated.

An American man who had stayed at the hotel with us - a storm chaser - made his way to the government complex and he began asking us how he could get out of the country. He pulled out his passport and asked who he could show it to, emphasising that he was an American citizen. When the Coast Guard arrived, he tried to get a ride with them but was told only the sick were the priority.

We also met Lashan McIntosh, the mother of Lachino McIntosh, the eight-year-old boy whose death The Tribune reported on Wednesday. She was hysterical - not just following her son’s death, but because she had brought her daughter to the clinic for treatment and she said she was desperate not to lose another child.

By this time, a path had been cleared back to Abaco Beach Resort, where we returned to get additional belongings, then came back to the clinic. We wanted to get off the island - and started asking about ways to find a way to leave.

We heard that the Sandy Point airport was open. It was an hour’s drive and we were able to go with media colleagues. We decided to take the chance.

The further south we went, the less damage we saw. At some point, trees were intact, and we encountered areas that weren’t hit as badly by the storm.

We got to the airport and begged Southern Air pilots for a ride. They wanted to help us but because it was a paid charter they couldn’t.

The pilots were getting concerned by the fact that the people they brought to the island were taking so long to come back. At one point they told us yes, we could get on the plane.

We were so excited. But they didn’t immediately leave and eventually the headlights of the government staff who chartered the plane were returning, and they told us sorry, we couldn’t go.

That was a new low. We were distressed. We were disappointed. We did not know if we were going to stay or what we would do.

We were an hour away from Marsh Harbour. It was night. Mosquitos were out in full force. Our misery

Photos: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff and anger reached a peak.

But media colleagues there alongside us for the journey came to our aid again and we were able to spend a night at a nearby motel.

AFTERMATH, DAY 4

Our final day was a day of frustration. We returned to the Sandy Point airport only to find that flights were no longer available because pilots had reportedly been told by NEMA they had to stop their charters.

Planes were coming in bringing relief supplies - as well as taking people, but at this stage people were coming in despite NEMA’s orders.

We had expected a plane to come in but it didn’t arrive. It was a day of despair and anger as we sat and waited, trying to find a way out.

More and more people kept arriving at the airport, trying to find a way off the island.

Finally, we had a chance to get on board a plane. We held in our excitement until the plane was in the air. But at last we took off. At least we were safe.

I was exhausted. I could barely focus. And at last I slept. Behind us, Abaco was destroyed. But unlike many, we were alive. We had a home to go to. So many others are not so fortunate.

A WOMAN who experienced medical issues at the government complex in Abaco, and who later died after being taken to the clinic.

PAGE 6, Friday, September 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

EXTENSIVE damage and destruction in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian in Great Abaco yesterday.

Photo: Gonzalo Gaudenzi/AP

Mother and baby forced to ride out storm in car

By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tribunemedia.net

A MOTHER and her one-year-old daughter were forced to seek refuge in their car after Dorian’s furious gusts blew off the roof of their Spring City, Abaco, home and the walls caved in all around them.

Ostina Dean, who spoke with The Tribune after being evacuated to New Providence, said a tree uprooted from her neighbour’s yard and slammed through her home.

Mrs Dean said: “The tree made its way in the house, in through the

front window, out through the back. After that happened, immediately the roof went up and the walls started to fall in. The only thing we can do is run. We had a car parked in the backyard in the corner of the house and that’s where we spent the duration of the storm.

“We waited for the eye not sure if that ever came, but as soon as the weather calmed down enough for us to get out of the car.

We went over to the shelter that was very close and that’s where the entirety of Spring City stayed until the storm had passed.”

Mrs Dean said she felt

like she was in the film “San Andreas”, but she had to protect her daughter. “(This experience) was different...we had hurricane, we had tornados and I want to say that we had tidal waves,” she said.

“I was scared but something kicked in and I had my baby and she can’t fend for herself and that’s what kept me going. That was my motivation, my baby…my child is not going out like this.”

Despite losing everything Mrs Dean is “grateful for the humbling experience”.

She said: “I’m good, you can get material things back, when you die you

can’t carry them with you.

I’ve learnt a long time not to hold material things close to my heart. The only thing that matter is life.

“You have to be grateful for the little that you have.

A lot of people didn’t make it out the storm with their mother, father or children.

I went back and looked at myself and said, ‘look at my house’ and I could have been saying ‘look at my baby.’”

Evacuee Justin Thompson told The Tribune no one would have survived Hurricane Dorian if it lasted “one more hour”.

The Category Five storm lashed Abaco with winds

more than 185mph for nearly a day.

Mr Thompson said: “I’ve never experienced nothing like that in my life. When the storm first came, we were all inside and it was ok. The first few minutes were alright until the plywood off our apartment started to go. The eye came over and we had time to batten up the windows properly and when the tail end of the storm came around it was like something I never experienced.

“It was like the building was rattling and we watched the roof lift up and just go.

The only other shelter was the closet or the bathroom

and one more hour I don’t believe I would have been here.”

Mr Thompson said he and his roommate were “very afraid” and the only thing they could have done was pray.

“My roommate and I huddled in the corner and we prayed. We just hoped and prayed to God and asked him to get us through this. That was very devastating,” he explained.

“I lost everything, but I had one or two bags of clothes that’s all I really saved everything else got flooded, the place got flooded so I really didn’t save anything else.”

MAN BLASTED HOLE WITH SHOTGUN FOR FAMILY TO ESCAPE

By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tribunemedia.net

A MAN had to resort to blasting the window of his home with a shotgun in order for his family to escape rising flood waters caused by Hurricane Dorian.

Celeste Stubbs, an Abaco evacuee, fought back her tears yesterday as she told reporters, “We have our lives and we didn’t think we

would have that.”

Mrs Stubbs added: “We lost everything, but things can be replaced. We live on a ridge and it’s a slight ridge in front of our house and we never dreamed we would have got (that much) water.

“We were in the room, in my daughter’s bedroom in the front and literally like we had boarded ourselves in and the water just... my father-in-law braced against

the door and the water just came and buckled the door.

“Luckily my husband had a shotgun and shot the window out and he just kicked, kicked, kicked and kicked the shutter out and we got out. We were lucky we were on the lull side of the storm and we kind of just held on to the shutters and whatever we could.”

Mrs Stubbs said she knew Hurricane Dorian “was

going to be bad” but her family never dreamed it would be that disastrous.

“My cousin’s little boy is two and he was sitting in the truck and he told his mom ‘I hear a choo choo’ and they said that was probably a tornado,” she said. “It’s just crazy, it’s too many stories to tell and every story is like mine.” “(They are) digging people out of rubble and it’s so many people alive, a

lot of lives lost but there a lot of miracles, just miracles you just don’t even know. ...Because it had look like a bomb had dropped, I didn’t know where I was not because I was you know, in shock but because you know...you didn’t know where you were...

“We got out, when the eye finally came, my fatherin-law came around the corner and it was the biggest, biggest relief to see

because we didn’t know.”

Nine-year-old Aiden Stubbs shared his experience with reporters yesterday of his encounter during the storm.

Aiden said a window cracked and water pushed in and broke down the door.

Cambria, serif12 He said: “We had to swim in the eye to our neighbour.

Then two days after our friends came and pick us up.”

THE only thing Patricia Darville took with her when she was rescued from decimated Man-o-War Cay on

Wednesday afternoon was a photo of her one-year-old grandson.

The 74-year-old

pridefully shared the photo as she recounted how she, infant Logan Thompson and his mother had to climb into the cupboards to escape flooding as parts of their home caved in.

She and her husband Leslie - also 74 - had come to Man-O-War Cay from Exuma, and like much of the country, severely underestimated the damage monster storm Hurricane Dorian would bring.

“We didn’t expect this,” she said when asked why they didn’t evacuate,”...and we didn’t want to leave our family.”

The National Emergency Management Agency did issue an evacuation order for Man-O-War Cay and other small cays in Abaco, however it was not mandatory.

For Mrs Darville and scores of other residents, riding out the storm “was devastating”.

“The bathroom caved in,” she continued, “parts of the roof came off. (Logan’s) crib was full of water. When the eye came, we tried to escape but there was so much water. The neighbour came and rescued us, and luckily they just

had leaking. Everything is damaged.”

Man-O-War is a narrow island only 2.5 miles long with a population of around 200. At some points, the distance between harbour and beach side of the island is just 100m.

Conditions deteriorated on the cay on Saturday, Mrs Darville said, and did not start to improve until Tuesday.

“We had no power for days because the generator flipped over, that was a tornado I think,” Mrs Darville continued. “I don’t know; it could take years to rebuild, lamp poles are down, everything, all over, ruined.”

Dorian ripped through the Abacos as a brutal, slow-moving Category Five hurricane, exposing the country to what has been described as the greatest national crisis in its history.

When rescues began on Wednesday, Logan and his mother were among the first groups to get on helicopters for Treasure Cay. She and Mr Darville, along with Joann Sands, would not get their chance to leave until later that afternoon.

Mrs Darville said she could

not take her suitcase, which was filled with wet clothes, but made sure to grab her photos of Logan that she had in a sealed plastic bag.

Recalling the horror of Dorian, Ms Sands said it was “three times as bad as Floyd” - referring to Hurricane Floyd of 1999, which brought some destruction to Abaco.

Ms Sands has lived on the cay for nearly 50 years.

“I felt safer there (in ManO-War) than going to the mainland of Abaco and my kids were there,” she said. “I just didn’t want to leave my family. It was very very bad.

It’s not livable anymore. The roof is gone, all the inner walls, it’s not livable anymore. There are maybe five homes that are livable.”

She said she did not think there were any storm related deaths in Man-OWar Cay. She spoke to The Tribune as she waited by the airstrip for any chance to get off the island, ultimately to her family in Florida.

“It is still standing, we didn’t lose any lives, but we’ve just had almost total devastation.”

Ms Sands added: “I’m trying to get to Florida as soon as possible.”

‘ALL I HAVE LEFT IS A PHOTO OF MY GRANDSON’

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, September 6, 2019, PAGE 7

Death toll may be ‘staggering’ from page one that safety and security remained a concern.

Yesterday, Dr Minnis said many factors needed to be considered and decided upon regarding evacuees.

This includes accommodations for evacuees and whether it is prudent to relocate them versus bringing necessary accommodations to affected islands.

Government officials said that non-profit organisation HeadKnowles evacuated at least 300 people from hardhit Abaco yesterday.

“We are aggressively doing all we can at this particular time,” Dr Minnis told reporters yesterday following a meeting with Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley and Allen Chastanet, Saint Lucian

prime minister.

When asked about a plan to relocate those in Abaco, Dr Minnis said: “We are going to address that. We have a committee that will be looking at accommodation.

“That is something that we discussed this morning (yesterday) and Allen the chairman of CARICOM, he and I will discuss that further because he’s had that challenge himself in his country. So we will discuss that further as to the value of relocation versus the value of bringing in the necessary accommodations and what type of accommodations are most appropriate for our nation.

“We will have a Cabinet meeting to discuss those matters and as usual we will keep the press and the nation abreast as to our daily progress and

what we’re doing so we won’t hold back anything from you, we’ll keep you abreast hopefully tomorrow (Friday),” he said further of an evacuation plan.

Speaking of safety and security issues as reports of looting in Abaco continue, Dr Minnis said several CARICOM countries have pledged to deploy armed forces if need be.

This would be in addition to the 150 officers that will be sent to the country from Jamaica’s Defence Force.

“We are concerned with security issues,” Dr Minnis said. “We know electricity is gone therefore nights are especially a challenge.

“We have had meetings with the CARICOM team that is here - Prime Minister Mottley, Prime Minister Allen Chastanet, the chairman and the secretary general and the team

from Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency.”

He continued: “Jamaica has promised us 150 personnel to assist on the ground with security. Trinidad has committed a number, Dominica would be willing to input if necessary. Barbados is willing. St Lucia is willing. Basically all of the Caribbean nations are willing to input with security to assist us because we all recognise that’s going to be a problem.

“Then we’ll have a meeting tomorrow (Friday) and then an emergency Cabinet where we’ll address the issue with the children.

“We will ensure that education of the kids in Abaco continues so we will address that tomorrow to ensure that there is no break in their education that is essential for us,” Dr Minnis said.

PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis

When contacted for comment Thursday night, Health Minister Dr Duane Sands confirmed some displaced people had been asked to leave the clinic so that proper attention could be given to those needing medical care and attention.

It is unclear where the displaced people would spend the night; some were evacuated out of the island yesterday, but many more remain on Abaco.

“We had almost 1,000 people in the clinic and we recognised that many of these individuals had no home, no shelter, but it was making it difficult to provide

care for the injured and the sick,” Dr Sands said.

Mr Johnson arrived in Sandy Point, Abaco shortly after 3pm Thursday and was disappointed by the level of chaos and level of humanitarian aid on the island once he arrived in Marsh Harbour. His aim is to find his lost brother.

He said Royal Bahamas Police Force officers and Royal Bahamas Defence Force marines are visible, but no tent or officials tending to the needs of victims could be seen.

“When I landed, there were probably about 400 people on the ground trying

to get out,” he told The Tribune. “And these people had to pay to get out of Sandy Point.

“I don’t know what time it is. I don’t know what game the government or NEMA playing, but right now I am at the clinic and they are pushing people out and telling them they have to sleep outside.

“The government complex, the people they are telling these victims they can’t stay in there that they have to be outside.”

He continued: “There is no NEMA operation going on here. Only thing I saw was choppers landing

and moving people out and taking out the injured.

That’s all I’ve seen. But in terms of ground work and restoration it’s not here.

“I’ve been to NEMA office on Gladstone Road (in New Providence) the last three days and all they are doing is playing busy in meetings and running around like they are doing something.

“People are down here dying. This is nonsense.

“This is the worst I’ve ever seen the government being proactive after the storm. Where I am at nothing is happening and by now they should have been on the ground with a large

‘HURRICANE VICTIMS TOLD TO LEAVE CLINIC’

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

SOME Hurricane Dorian victims have been pushed out of the Marsh Harbour Clinic and are being told they cannot sleep at the government complex, two of the few buildings sheltering residents in the aftermath of the storm.

These were the claims of Richard Johnson Jr, the brother of Adrian Farrington Jr, a five-year-old boy missing in Abaco after he was separated from his father in a power storm surge as Dorian pummeled the island.

FEAR OF ILLNESSES SPREADING IN WAKE OF DORIAN

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

THE Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation is concerned about the possibility of an outbreak of water-borne and vectorborne illnesses in the wake of Hurricane Dorian, a local representative said yesterday.

Dr Esther de Gourville, PAHO/WHO regional officer for the Americas, said there is a “high risk” of a “second wave of crisis” due to the “extensive flooding” caused by the monster storm and the “compromising of sewage systems” on the most impacted islands.

Dr de Gourville said sewage contamination, food-borne illnesses such as diarrhea, and vector-borne illnesses such as the dengue fever are all causes for concern, the response to which will require “assistance” for the next few weeks.

Dr de Gourville made her remarks during a press conference to outline exactly what PAHO/WHO is doing to assist the government of the Bahamas in conducting disaster relief efforts for residents of Grand Bahama and Abaco.

She said as it stands, PAHO/WHO is working closely with the Ministry of Health (MOH) to secure food supplies, safe drinking water and proper sanitation for those reeling in the storm’s aftermath.

Additionally, she said the organisation is assisting in mobilising emergency medical teams to compliment the MOH’s services.

Dr de Gourville noted that a number of health facilities have been severely damaged due to Hurricane Dorian’s 185 mph winds and consequent flooding, and that PAHO/ WHO is currently assessing how many facilities can be made functional in the short-term.

The Rand Memorial Hospital in Grand Bahama, which was flooded during the storm, is “maintaining service” but not accepting new patients, she said.

At present, Dr de Gourville said PAHO/WHO is operating out of the Marsh Harbour Clinic on Abaco, and has increased its search capacity on the impacted islands. Additionally, she said two teams from Samaritans Purse International Disaster Relief and Team Rubicon are currently providing “full hospital capacity service”, especially given the Rand Memorial hospital’s situation.

She also said some 100 people have already been airlifted by emergency rescue services, the majority of whom were Abaco residents.

However, Dr de Gourville said PAHO/WHO still has “a number of key priorities to address”, namely trying to prevent any outbreaks of food, water, or vector-borne illnesses.

“Due to the extensive flooding that has occurred, there’s likely to be some extreme contamination of the water and the water that is stagnating on the ground now in many locations,” she said.

“In that situation we can anticipate water-borne

tent feeding people and giving medication.”

This comes as there are reports of growing tensions and aggression between residents on the island due to looting, a scarcity of safe dwelling structures and fears over crime.

The Tribune understands the government moved to restore some level of order at the government clinic and complex, after conditions became unsanitary.

Many residents from nearby shanty town The Mudd, which has been destroyed, had been sheltering at the government complex.

FLOODING in Abaco after Hurricane Dorian. PAHO/WHO is warning of illnesses borne by water among other threats in the wake of the storm.

Photo: Terrel W Carey/Tribune Staff diseases and food-borne diseases. Water-borne and food-borne diseases, waterborne would be diarrhea diseases, and vector-borne, you run the risk of dengue fever and other infectious diseases.”

Dr de Gourville said PAHO/WHO is “not standing idly by”, and is prepared to “ramp up the responses to reduce the risk of outbreaks of these diseases”.

She said PAHO/WHO is issuing public communication messages for the “safe-handling of food and

water”.

“When food and water is delivered to the persons in need they will be pre-packaged so that there would be no need for people to be cooking or handling water to consume those items.

“So in the immediate aftermath, messages are being sent out on food and safe food handling, and safe water. How to make that safe.”

She added: “Clearly it is a desperate situation and stocks of food and water are being made available

and will be delivered to the affected islands. There is a British vessel that is already positioned and providing water to persons who are on Abaco for example. And within a day or two you would see increasingly the ability to operate on the ground on those two islands and to provide the much needed relief that persons need.

“Arrangements are being made through for example United Nations agencies and other humanitarian agencies to secure food and

water supplies and emergency medical equipment and emergency medical supplies for the affected population.”

Nonetheless, Dr de Gourville also commended the government for its disaster relief efforts.

“I think the government is doing a tremendous job in responding to this crisis and the coordination that is being done by (the National Emergency Management Agency) is unparalleled,” she said. “I think they’re doing a very good job.”

PAGE 8, Friday, September 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

Cut off - residents unable to reach East End through flood waters

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net GRAND Bahama residents were desperate to get to East End yesterday to check on relatives and loved ones who they have not seen or heard from since Hurricane Dorian landed on the island.

Scores of Grand Bahama residents could not get through flood water on the Grand Bahama Highway to access the area.

While attempting to get into East End, The Tribune met a line of vehicles at a standstill in the road near the University of the Bahamas’ Northern Campus. Motorists in small vehicles feared that they would not make it through the standing water.

One woman who said she lost her entire family in East End, and had not heard from her daughter who was in Sweeting’s Cay, was among those trying to get into the area. After waiting for awhile, the distraught woman and two other people asked a man driving a truck to take them across the flooded highway.

He agreed and the group hopped on the back of the truck, then sped off.

Bernadette Thompson and her son-in-law were trying to get to Rocky Creek, a little settlement

just before McClean’s Town. They too were hindered by flood water on the highway. According to Ms Thompson, two relatives had stayed in Rocky Creek, which is believed to have experienced storm surge of over 20ft. Ms Thompson said she has not heard from either of the men.

“We understood water in Rocky Creek was over 20ft high there,” she said.

“We heard everything is gone. Two uncles were left in Rocky Creek and so far the two are missing, they decided to stay.

“We came out here to see if we can try to at least make it as far as the caves (at Lucayan National Park) where the road split.”

The roadway at Lucayan National Park was washed away during the storm. The break in the road has made it impossible for vehicles to pass.

Synobia Reckley, who evacuated East End, does not know if her father who remained in the settlement, is alive. “Right now I can’t hear from him. I don’t know if he’s alive. I really don’t care about the house, I just want to know if he is alive.

Hearing he is alive will bring me a little comfort, but to see and hear his voice, I would be really relieved because I cannot eat or sleep, or do nothing,” she said.

A COUPLE embraces on a road destroyed by Hurricane Dorian as they walk to the town of High Rock to try and find their relatives in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian in Grand Bahama yesterday.

Photo: Ramon Espinosa/AP

HAITIAN OFFICIAL: EVACUATE ISLAND - THERE’S NO PLACE TO LIVE ON ABACO

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net HAITIAN Chargé D’Affaires Dorval Darlier has urged the Minnis administration to evacuate as many people as possible to New Providence as there is no place for them to live in Abaco.

While he said the Haitian government has given him

the green light to assist in any way possible, Mr Darlier said those in Abaco would be better off in the capital. Many Haitians who resided in The Mudd shanty town in Abaco, which was destroyed by Hurricane Dorian, are now in deplorable conditions, forced to take shelter in the few surviving structures, like the

government complex in Marsh Harbour.

Many of them are packed into offices in the complex, sleeping on the floor and desks. There is no electricity or running water in the building. When The Tribune was on the island this week, this newspaper witnessed storm victims in unhygienic conditions, due to people urinating and

defecating in open areas and being forced to bath in rain water.

Wet clothes were hung out to dry on the railings of the building.

Aware of the immediate need for help, Mr Darlier said he did not know how many people in the Haitian community were left without homes.

“If there is no place for them to stay, you have to bring those people here or make shelter for them,” Mr Darlier said when he was asked if evacuations from Abaco were needed. “Even if I bring some goods down there, where are they going to shelter? Where are they going to live?

“I think the best plan what the government can do is move. Those they can move from Abaco make a shelter for them here for

them to give them assistance for whatever they need.”

Mr Darlier said now is not the time for flag colours or to highlight who is Haitian and who is Bahamian.

“Everybody is in need.

It’s not about Bahamians, it’s not about Haitians, it’s not about the flag colour as the prime minister has said.

“It’s all about to help.

Whatever it is, I am going to charter a plane right now.

I don’t even need to go to the US. So whatever I can find in Super Value I will put them on the plane.

“I have the funds right there. The government gave me the green light to go. That’s what I am here for.”

Mr Darlier said Haitians and Bahamians have all contacted him for help.

“The president in Haiti

jamaaltheartist@gmail.com

he tell me whatever I have in the embassy just put it to assist the people who are in need down there.

“I received a lot of calls this morning. I received calls from the Haitian Bahamians. I received calls from the Haitians down there even from the Bahamians because I was live on Facebook and they told me they are in need.

“I think the government should know that there is a lot of people in Treasure Cay – that’s why I put on my Facebook ‘SOS in Treasure Cay.’ There is a group of people stuck down there who really need help.”

• The call for evacuation was mirrored by people at airports in Abaco last night, with locals urging the government to undertake a major airlift to take people off the island.

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, September 6, 2019, PAGE 9

$2m from Carnival Cruise Line - and $1m from Bacardi CARNIVAL Cruise Line’s corporate parent and its chairman have pledged a multi-million-dollar donation toward hurricane-relief for storm affected islands.

The corporation’s philanthropic arm, Carnival Foundation, and its nine global cruise line brands together with the Micky and Madeleine Arison Family Foundation have pledged to donate $2m in funding and in-kind support for relief efforts.

Carnival Foundation and the company’s nine cruise line brands – Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Seabourn, AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard, P&O Cruises (Australia)

and P&O Cruises (UK) – are pledging a total of $1m in monetary and inkind donations in support of immediate relief and recovery efforts in the Bahamas. Carnival Corporation chairman Micky Arison and his wife Madeleine are matching the corporation’s commitment with a $1m donation from the Micky and Madeleine Arison Family Foundation.

“We are fully committed to supporting the critical relief and recovery efforts already underway for the Bahamas, and we are working closely with officials and affected communities to identify the needs for support and assistance,” said Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corporation.

“Our company has always been closely tied to The Bahamas with a rich history spanning many years, so it’s heart-breaking to see the impact of Hurricane Dorian, and our thoughts and prayers are with the people of The Bahamas.

We have long admired the unyielding spirit of the Bahamian people and have no doubt they will overcome, rebuild and recover, and we look forward to supporting their efforts.”

Carnival Corporation also announced a partnership with Tropical Shipping and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to collect and deliver NEMA-approved food and supplies donated in Broward, Miami-Dade

and Palm Beach counties for The Bahamas.

“Carnival Corporation is partnering with Tropical Shipping, which will serve as an approved clearinghouse and distribution centre for non-profit organisations, schools, businesses and residents of Broward County, MiamiDade County and Palm Beach County to expedite timely delivery of donated food and goods collected in the local South Florida community.

The effort, funded by both companies, will work in partnership with NEMA to provide immediate assistance to the people of The Bahamas where it is most needed,” a press release noted.

* Also announced yesterday was a $1m donation in cash and other assistance by Bacardi Ltd and the Bacardi family.

In a statement yestereday, the company said: “Bacardi will collaborate with non-profit partners and the Bahamian government to ensure that this cash donation provides immediate and long-term assistance to local relief agencies in their efforts to support the islands and communities that need it most. The company has also organised an employee drive to collect much needed items for those in need in the wake of Hurricane Dorian as well as communicated a website to provide cash donations to a global humanitarian

partner.

“Bacardi has a long relationship with The Bahamas which became its adopted home in the early 1960s when the company moved there after the revolutionary government forces in Cuba illegally confiscated all assets in Cuba from Bacardi.”

Chairman Facundo L Bacardi said: “We have never forgotten the incredible kindness of the Bahamian people and the important role they played in the history of our company. We hope in a small way to contribute to the rebuilding of this great country in the face of this tragedy just as The Bahamas helped Bacardi rebuild nearly 60 years ago.”

LEADERS of the Baptist community say they are ready to assist storm victims “in any way possible”.

Yesterday, the Bahamas Baptist Missionary and Educational Convention’s president, Rev Dr Lloyd Smith, expressed sadness and offered the assistance of his members in helping with the restoration of both Abaco and Grand Bahama in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.

Flanked by his executive team and several other pastors at a press conference on Thursday at the Michael C Symonette Administrative Complex, Dr Smith said it is imperative that the country’s largest religious denomination render its support.

“The convention sends our prayers and empathises with the many families who have experienced the death of loved ones, as well as those who lost their houses and personal belongings,” said Dr Smith, the 10th president of the convention and the pastor of the Mt Horeb Baptist Cathedral in Sandyport.

“We recognise that many are devastated and hurting at this time and the

aftermath of such an experience will forever linger in our hearts and minds as a Bahamian people. It is our prayer that the God of all comfort will sustain each of you in these difficult moments.”

He also said: “Our first priority is to get the House of God rebuilt,” Dr Smith said. “We are going to have to build our churches first and then we will look at whatever assistance we can give to the building of homes.”

On Monday, a team of about 19 pastors, led by Dr Smith and his executive team, is anticipating touring the two affected islands.

More than 20 deaths have been attributed to Dorian and the government expects the official death toll to rise.

The storm has left thousands of people displaced.

“The Bahamas Baptist Missionary and Educational Convention is committed and stands ready to assist in any way possible,” Dr Smith said. “Our churches and pastors are commended for their quick response during and after the storm and we stand ready to work hand in hand with our partners around the world in

making sure that every citizen’s need is met.”

Dr Smith noted that the Southern Baptist Convention has pledged its support and will be going

along with local pastors on the fact-finding trip. He added the Baptist World Alliance, the Baptist Convention of America and the Baptist Association of

Wisconsin have all pledged their support.

Dr Smith urged persons to assist the convention with donations of any sort by contacting the office of

the executive secretary at 463-5266 or 364-3209. Items can be dropped off to the convention’s office on Jean Street between the hours of 9am to 5pm.

BAPTISTS: WE’RE READY TO HELP IN ANY WAY POSSIBLE

RED CROSS: WE NEED TO HELP OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS

By LEANDRA ROLLE

THE Bahamas Red Cross Society has issued an appeal for donations to assist with the needs of hurricane victims in Abaco and Grand Bahama.

During a press conference held at the Red Cross’ headquarters, the organisation’s president Terez Curry said yesterday the agency is in need of cash donations along with food and housing supplies to help those affected by Hurricane Dorian.

These includes

non-perishable items, canned goods, boxed items, baby supplies, toiletry and hygiene items, cleaning supplies, generators, tarps, tools and other items geared towards moving debris.

Commonwealth Bank has already made a $100,000 donation to the Bahamas Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund to help assist with the critical immediate needs of hurricane victims.

President and Director of Commonwealth Bank Raymond Winder noted the impact of Hurricane Dorian on Abaco

and Grand Bahama is personal to the bank, considering that many of its clients, teammates and family members live within those communities.

“We understand the gravity and tremendous burden many thousands will face as they try to rebuild their lives. We are committed to helping our brothers and sisters throughout the Bahamas begin to recover in the aftermath of this tragic event,” he said.

When asked about relief for CB customers, Mr Winder said that they are identifying all opportunities

with existing clients regarding what current facilities they have and what additional facilities that CB can offer “in terms of extending the terms of allowing them to go for a period of time without having to make a payment.”

Mrs Curry expressed gratitude to Mr Winder for CB’s generous donation, adding that funds donated by the bank will be specifically used for the immediate needs of hurricane victims in Abaco and Grand Bahama.

“We are here to help, and we are ready to

provide whatever is needed for them to bring some normalcy of life. The funds that are donated are strictly for disaster and will be used strictly for disaster. Here at the Red Cross, we do not mingle our funds. We have a separate account for general (operations) and for disasters,” she said.

Mrs Curry told The Tribune that several BRCS members have already been sent to Abaco to provide aid to the hurricane victims.

“On the ground, we have set up our command centre

and distribution centre and persons can come to seek assistance. However, we typically would go into the community door-to-door to assess their needs and provide the need,” she said.

Mrs Curry implored other corporate entities to “step up, step out and to donate” to assist with the relief efforts being made to help those deeply affected

by Hurricane Dorian.

Persons who wish to donate to the Bahamas Red Cross Society can do so by visiting the group’s GoFundMe page or website.

WE ARE LIVING THROUGH THE STAGES OF GRIEF AFTER DORIAN THIS past weekend, two of our northern islands, Abaco and Grand Bahama, bore the brunt of a vicious superstorm named Dorian.

Hurricane Dorian will go down as one of the most destructive forces to ever pass through our islands in modern history. As I write, the death toll from his Hurricane is at 30 but as Minister of Health Dr Duane Sands has warned, that number will no doubt climb unimaginably higher.

Recently, after the loss of a cherished coworker, our office got a visit from Dr Wayne Thompson who listened, spoke with, and worked to guide us through our grief.

Based on my conversation with him and on conversations and observations I’ve had, it seems many in our country are right now in various states of denial, anger, bargaining and depression; they are the first four of the five stages of grief.

If we were not living through such an unprecedented level of death and

destruction from Dorian, I might be speculating about how Dorian tried to destroy our country but “missed” because “he een catch us in Nassau”.

Yes, New Providence has been spared, but our ‘heart and soul’ have been decimated.

I’M IN DENIAL I get upset while trying to reach close and distant relatives in Freeport and Green Turtle Cay right now.

Sure, our phone and electrical services are just now starting to resemble something familiar in the capital, but both GB and Abaco are in veritable darkness.

Yes, though we have been getting timely updates from NEMA, there undoubtedly exists a visceral yearning for more information from

our leaders.

How is the search for survivors going? What about all those names of the missing? What is the current death toll? Is there any truth to talk of many deceased bodies seen in streets but uncounted?

Is there any truth to all the talk of looting? Is our government doing all it possibly can to help survivors who are waiting, hoping, clinging to life and praying to be rescued?

I’M ANGRY When I look at social media - the volatile voice notes, perturbing pictures and violent videos - I recognise that our national hell persists.

People are desperate to live. And we, the ‘lucky’ onlookers, are desperate to

help them live.

Maybe there’s more we can do. Maybe we should send more relief supplies.

Maybe we should plead with more countries with disaster recovery experience to come in and help.

What do we need to do to save our brothers and sisters? Because we are willing to do it.

I’M BEGGING AND BORROWING It’s hard watching the news. It’s hard reading the newspaper. It’s exhausting looking at Facebook, and Twitter, and WhatsApp. I’m grateful for all the help and support our country is getting. There is a long list of people who deserve – and will get in time – accolades. But none of that matters right now.

I’M HONESTLY DEPRESSED After a natural disaster, research shows survivors can have psychological fallouts for weeks, months – even lifetimes.

Families, churches, community members, psychologists and school

officials, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the US National Guard, Coast Guard, global volunteer first responders, construction crews, etc, aren’t all that is needed to assist the Bahamas, in rebuilding and recovering after the ravages of Hurricane Dorian.

The nation will also have to rebuild and recover psychologically.

Often after natural disasters, earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis, wild fires, etc, survivors tend to minimize mental health impacts of natural disasters.

It’s referred to as the “we’re all right” mentality.

According to Susan Clayton, lead author for the American Psychological Association, and her 2017 report, “Mental Health and Our Changing Climate.”

The report urges local governments to create preparedness plans for psychological recovery, just as they do for medical attention and physical infrastructure post natural disasters.

It seems as if psychological recovery is on the national radar, as I’ve heard Prime Minister Minnis mention it several times on his nightly press briefings (which he should be commended for, by the way).

Hopefully it holds more water than certain campaign promises about mandatory evacuation legislation. (First and only political jab this week, I promise.)

The talented mental health professionals that we have in this country have an opportunity to help the nation recover mentally.

Right now, we need all the psychiatrists, psychologists, therapists, pastors, preachers and mental health professionals we can find.

Acceptance, I’m afraid, which is the final stage of grief, is a long way away.

“God promises to make something good, out of the storms that bring devastation to your life.”

Romans 8:28

PAGE 10, Friday, September 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

THIS photo shows destruction from Hurricane Dorian in Marsh Harbour on Wednesday. (Al Diaz/Miami Herald via AP)

Dorian’s emotional toll – where are the shrinks, the counsellors, the comforting hugs?

O

N AUGUST 23, 1992, family members were stationed on an island just off Bimini when Hurricane Andrew slammed The Bahamas with ferocious winds that topped 200 miles an hour.

The winds howled louder and louder, building up such power they forced a shuttered window to implode. Furniture flew through the open hole, first a single dresser drawer, then another, then the entire bureau and then the cat. Barometric pressure dropped so low that in a nearby cottage a young girl’s heart simply stopped beating and she literally died for a moment. Thankfully, she was revived.

That weather event took place 27 years and 14 days ago and to this day, when a glass breaks, the strong woman who once endured the demanding life on a small island shakes uncontrollably. The sound of breaking glass triggers all too vivid memories of the hours of darkness, fear and terror, the pummelling of a storm, the toll it took.

If that single day’s trauma still haunts someone who lived through it nearly three decades ago, imagine what the emotional impact of surviving Dorian will do to the people of the second and third largest cities/ settlements in The Bahamas. Using the second and third largest cities comparison, if it were in the United States, it would be the equivalent of more than 10 million people in living Los Angeles and Chicago. On a scale relative to the size of the whole country, approximately one in every five

By Diane Phillips people in The Bahamas has been exposed to the horrific events of Dorian.

According to Katherine Ford, Ph.D., a Washington, DC-area based clinical psychologist who has spent years as a trauma specialist, it is unlikely that anyone can escape an emotional impact and for those who are most deeply affected, the reaction is likely to

– it could be something as simple as a drop of water coming from a spigot – can activate a re-enactment.

It triggers the megdalia, that part of our brain that looks for danger.”

The reaction, she says, can be summed up in the simple statement: The world is no longer the way it was.

“In the case of the people in Grand Bahama

“Life by itself is trauma. An event like Hurricane Dorian takes away a sense of safety and grounding, part of our basic survival instincts. It also robs you of the resources that have helped hold you together internally – family, home – other resources and sets you up for future activation because anything that feels similar to this trauma – it could be something as simple as a drop of water coming from a spigot – can activate a re-enactment.”

Dr Katherine Ford, Ph.D. be exacerbated if not dealt with as urgently and immediately as possible.

“Life by itself is trauma,” said Dr. Ford.

“An event like Hurricane Dorian takes away a sense of safety and grounding, part of our basic survival instincts. It also robs you of the resources that have helped hold you together internally – family, home – other resources and sets you up for future activation because anything that feels similar to this trauma

and Abaco, especially, the ground has been moved from under them, literally,” she said.

Powerful storms are unlike other threats.

There is no social contest, Dr. Ford explains, none to blame. “You my experience anger, and ask, ‘Why me? Why did have to happen to me?’ But there is no one to fight.”

You can’t punch a storm or bang your fist on a table to vent anger.

Feelings of inadequacy

VOLUNTEERS walk under the wind and rain from Hurricane Dorian through a flooded road as they work to rescue families near the Causarina bridge in Freeport, Tuesday.

(AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

and marginalization can turn inward. Following Hurricane Katrina that battered the Gulf Coast and wiped out portions of New Orleans, the medical community saw a surge in alcoholism, depression, sadness, even a sharp increase in suicidal thoughts.

The body can also react with a desire to flee – wanting to run, but where can you run to in the midst or immediate aftermath of a storm – or it can freeze, temporarily paralyzed until the cause of the trauma passes.

If you can’t fight, and you can’t flee, and the goal is to survive, you freeze.

And that often leads to further depression after the storm. “It takes away your ability to think cogently for a while.”

According to noted author, clinical psychiatrist and internationally respected Bahamian Dr. David Allen, Dorian is unique in that in one way or another it affected nearly everyone in The Bahamas.

“Our family and friends in Abaco and Grand Bahama have suffered far more than we could ever imagine. If we let ourselves feel the depth and pathos of this experience, we can be overwhelmed and emotionally paralyzed. The fact is what happened in Abaco and Grand Bahama, has also

happened to us. We are one country,” Dr. Allen reminds us.

He notes that the immediate reaction to trauma is shock, similar to what Dr. Ford called the freezing or paralysis stage.

Both agree it’s at this stage where help is most urgently needed to avoid post-traumatic stress disorder.

And Dr. Allen describes the manifestations a. Arousal symptoms such as flashbacks, insomnia, agitation, impatience, irritability, frustration, increased sensitivity, paranoid ideation and hyper vigilance. b. Withdrawal symptoms from family, children and friends, excess use of alcohol and drugs, and the inability to return to previous function such as work, responsibilities, etc. c. Physical symptoms such as headache, stomach ache, fatigue and lower immune response d. Societal symptoms such as increased accidents, increased domestic violence, increased community conflict So while everyone is doing all they can to get food, clothing, shelter and construction materials to rebuild Abaco and Grand Bahama, will someone remember to send counsellors, shrinks and comforting hugs? Every single victim of Dorian needs emotional support.

My dear friend, Joseph Darville, understood that.

After Hurricane Joaquin, he went to his native Long Island and though the home where he grew up was totally destroyed, he found a cot to sleep on and every day went about the business of encouraging victims, letting them pour their hearts out, hearing their fear, helping them reorganize.

But most of all, he hugged them and gave them hope.

HOORAY FOR ALIV

All Aliv had to do to boost business during the days that Hurricane Dorian dominated the news was share video of customers of the other telecom provider trying to reach each other. “We are sorry. All circuits are busy now. Try your call later.”

Clink. Or the words that appeared on the screen, Not registered on network, even though you are calling home where you have called maybe 1,000 times before.

Or the frustrated customers of that other network screaming down the smartphone that if they could ever get service their first call was to the little start-up that proved it could perform and now threatens to slay the onetime giant of the local market.

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, September 6, 2019, PAGE 11

How YOU can help In the wake of Hurricane Dorian, groups and organisations are already providing direct help to those affected. Here are some of the ways in which you can assist.

NEMA BAHAMAS Donations: Cheques payable to Bahamas Disaster Relief Fund Deliver to NEMA, PO Box N7147, Gladstone Road, Nassau or by hand or courier to the same address Cash donations to RBC Royal Bank Bahamas Ltd, Nassau Bahamas Beneficiary bank Swift: ROYCBSNS Beneficiary account number: 05625 1281013 Beneficiary name: Bahamas Disaster Relief Fund International donations: US dollars Swift: CHASUS33 JP Morgan Chase Bank New York ABA 021000021 Beneficiary bank account number 001 1 188448 Japanese Yen Swift: BOTKJPJT MUFG Bank (Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi), Tokyo, Japan Swiss Franc Swift: CRESCHZZ Credit Suisse First Boston, Zurich, Switzerland Euro Swift: SOGEFRPP Societe Generale, Paris, France Canadian Dollars Swift: ROYCCAT2 Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto, Canada British Pounds Swift: NWBKGB2l National Westminster Bank, London Contact: 323-5394/341-0127 Email: nemadonations@bahamas.gov.bs Emergency numbers: 322-6731/323-1373/323-1395

BAHAMAS RED CROSS Donations: Non-perishable goods, baby supplies, cleaning items and bedding to Red Cross Headquarters at JFK Collection hours: 8.30am-4.30pm Monetary donations can be deposited at A/C #289-426-6 RBC (Royal Bank of Canada, John F Kennedy Drive).

International donations at: • https://www.ifrc.org/en/donate-us/ • https://www.gofundme.com/f/ f9ege-hurricane-dorian-relief-fund • suncash.me/thebahamasredcross

HURRICANE DORIAN RELIEF INITIATIVE - BAHAMAS Partnership involving HeadKnowles, Ports International, Family Medicine Center, Bahamas Rotary Clubs, Rev, Miss Millies, God Squad Universal, Hands For hunber, SL, Kiwanis International, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc, NAL, Grace Community Church, Struckum, Elite Wellness Solutions, Lifestyle Digital Media Group, Baha Mar Resort Foundation, Zen International Inc, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc, Aliv, The Plug Collection, Coca Cola, Caribbean Bottling Company, Perfec-Tone.

Donations: Water, tuna, sardines, mackerel, corned beef and other canned goods. Toiletries, sanitary products, pampers, premixed formula, flashlights, batteries, tarps, nails,

hammers, chainsaws and gas jugs. Regular updates on Facebook page for specific items needed.

Collection hours: 7.30am-9pm daily, NPCC Blake Road and JFK Drive Contact: 327-1660 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ hurricanedorianrelief242.

Website: https://www.hurricanedorianrelief242.com.

HEADKNOWLES Donations: GoFundMe for emergency funds at www.gofundme.com/f/ headknowles-emergency-funds The group is also asking for generators, tarps, chainsaws, portable stoves, butane cannisters, air mattreses, liquid baby formula, diapers, wet wipes, toiletries including female sanitary products, mosquito repellent, water filtration devices, and matches.

LEND A HAND BAHAMAS Donations: Lend A Hand Bahamas has launched a fundraiser to provide needed materials not normally donated outright as well as direct monetary support to those impacted. The link is: https://lendahandbahamas.networkforgood.com/ projects/80136-bahamas-hurricane-relieffund.

ANGLICAN YOUNG ADULTS Donations: Clothing in new or mint (good) condition and separated accordingly. Tops, bottoms, shoes, towels, hygiene items and underwear for all ages/sizes will be accepted. Also welcomed are items such as non-perishable food, personal hygiene items, infant and children supplies and household products. For more information on drop-offs, contact 359-3143. Collection hours: 8am-6pm at Anglican Church of the Epiphany, Prince Charles Drive. For details or to volunteer, call Glen Ritchie, priest warden, on 376-8245, or Carl Brennen, people’s warden, on 462-3088.

ROTARY DISASTER RELIEF FUND Financial Donations: Wiring instructions as below Bank of America N.A., Miami branch Nationsbank Tower,100 S.E. 2nd Street, Miami Florida, 33131 Miami, A/C 1901009680 ABA No. 026009593 For credit to Commonwealth Bank Ltd Swift: COMWBSNS For further credit to: ROTARY DISASTER RELIEF FUND A/C 1004195 13 Ridgeway Drive, Nassau Bahamas PO Box EE 15627, Nassau, Bahamas Bank of America N.A., New York Branch New York, NY A/C No. 6550619464 ABA No. 026009593 For credit to Commonwealth Bank Ltd Swift: COMWBSNS

For further credit to: ROTARY DISASTER RELIEF FUND A/C 1004195 13 Ridgeway Drive, Nassau Bahamas P.O. Box EE 15627, Nassau, Bahamas GB Pound Sterling Bank of America N.A., London Branch 5 Canada Square London E14 5AQ, United Kingdom A/C No. 600865920011 IBAN – GB70 BOFA 1650 5065 9200 11 Swift: BOFAGB22 For credit to Commonwealth Bank Ltd Swift: COMWBSNS For credit to Commonwealth Bank Ltd A/C 1004195 13 Ridgeway Drive, Nassau Bahamas P.O. Box EE 15627, Nassau, Bahamas

CARNIVAL CORPORATION and TROPICAL SHIPPING Donations: Ready-to-eat meals, tents, adult-size cots, hypiene kits (pampers, baby wipes, sanitary napkins, deodorant, toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, toilet paper, adult diapers, hand sanitizer), bottled water, non-perishable food items including baby food, powdered milk, baby formula, disposable cutlery, water bladders, reusable water containers, first aid items, portable generators, chainsaws, tarps, tools, portable stoves, portable lamps, water purification kits, flashlights, blankets and towels, insect repellent, portable radios, batteries, portable bathroom, cleaning supplies, life jackets and ponchos.

Drop-off locations: Miami-Dade County Main Library – Miami Dade, Mon–Sat, 8am–5pm.

(305) 375-2665 Stephen P Clark Center – Miami Dade, Mon–Sat, 8am–5pm.

Joseph Caleb Center – Miami Dade, Mon– Sat, 8am–5pm.

Office of Emergency Management Warehouse – Miami Dade,Mon–Sat, 8am–5pm.

Tropical Shipping Cargo Receiving Location – Miami, Mon-Fri 8am-4pm. (561) 881-3999, (561) 881-3951 Tropical Shipping Cargo Receiving Location – West Palm Beach, Monday-Friday, 8am4pm.(561) 881-3999, (561) 881-3951 Email: hurricanecentral@tropical.com

TROPIX SHIPPING Tropix outlets in Fort Lauderdale and Nassau will be open to receiving relief. The address is Tropix Abaco, 5610 NW 12th Avenue, Suite 203, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309.

MIAMI DADE COMMUNITY EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER Donations: Toiletries, diapers, first aid items, cleaning supplies, canned goods, box fans, leather work gloves, hand sanitizer, non-perishable food, water, wipes (cleaning and baby), tents, generators. No clothes, please. 5120 NW 24th Avenue, Miami, Florida, from 10am-6pm. Contact 786-877-7826/786-269-8070/305-343-7971.

PAGE 12, Friday, September 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

JOHNSON SEEKS UK ELECTION BID AS POLITICAL FOES PUSH BACK

By JILL LAWLESS ASSOCIATED PRESS

BRITAIN’S Prime Minister Boris Johnson, right, meets with US Vice President Mike Pence inside 10 Downing Street in London, Thursday. (Peter Summers/Pool photos via AP)

LONDON (AP) — Boxed in by opponents and abandoned politically even by his own brother, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson struggled Thursday to keep his Brexit plans on track, and he accused lawmakers

of thwarting democracy by blocking his call for a new election.

Johnson remained determined to secure an election after lawmakers rejected his attempt to trigger a snap poll and moved to stop him taking the U.K. out of the European Union next month without a divorce deal. House of Commons leader Jacob

Rees-Mogg told Parliament that a vote would be held Monday on a new motion calling for an election in October.

It’s uncertain whether it will pass, with opposition parties divided over whether to agree to an election now.

Johnson said he would “rather be dead in a ditch” than delay Brexit any further, and insisted that whether or not Britain left the EU as planned on Oct. 31 must be “a matter for the people of this country to decide.”

“I don’t want an election at all, but frankly I cannot see any other way,” he said, flanked by cadets at a police academy on what felt very much like an election campaign stop.

Earlier, he called opponents’ rejection of a snap election “a cowardly insult to democracy.”

Johnson’s determination to lead Britain out of the EU on Oct. 31 faces strong opposition from lawmakers, including members of his own Conservative Party who oppose a no-deal Brexit.

Conflict His brother, Jo Johnson, dramatically quit the government Thursday, saying he could no longer endure the conflict “between family loyalty and the national interest.”

Jo Johnson was a business minister in his older brother’s government, despite his opposition to leaving the EU without a divorce deal. He said he would also step down from Parliament, the latest in a series of resignations

by Conservative moderates opposed to the government’s hard-line Brexit stance.

Boris Johnson became prime minister in July after promising Conservatives that he would complete Brexit and break the impasse that has paralysed Britain’s politics since voters decided in June 2016 to leave the bloc and which brought down his predecessor, Theresa May. After only six weeks in office, however, his plans to lead the U.K. out of the EU are in crisis.

He is caught between the EU, which refuses to renegotiate the deal it struck with May, and a majority of British lawmakers opposed

to leaving without an agreement. Most economists say a no-deal Brexit would cause severe economic disruption and plunge the U.K. into recession.

Johnson’s solution is to seek an election that could shake up Parliament and produce a less troublesome crop of lawmakers. It’s a risky gambit: Opinion polls don’t point to a clear majority for the Conservatives and the public mood is volatile.

British prime ministers used to be able to call elections at will, but under 2011 legislation fixing elections at five-year intervals, they now need the support of two-thirds of lawmakers in Parliament to hold an early poll.

On Wednesday, Johnson asked Parliament to back an Oct. 15 election — but Parliament said no, with opposition parties either voting against him or abstaining.

Corbyn said Labour, the biggest opposition party, would only vote for an early election if the prospect of a no-deal Brexit was taken off the table.

Labour economy spokesman John McDonnell said the party wanted an election but was still deciding on whether to seek one before the Oct. 31 Brexit deadline, or to wait until Parliament had secured a delay to Britain’s departure from the bloc.

“The problem that we have got is that we cannot at the moment have any confidence in Boris Johnson abiding by any commitment or deal that we could construct,” he told the BBC. “That’s the truth of it. So, we are now consulting about whether it’s better to go long, therefore, rather than to go short.”

Opposition lawmakers, supported by Conservative Party rebels, are close to passing a bill that would block a no-deal Brexit on Oct. 31, compelling the prime minister to seek a three-month delay to Britain’s departure if no agreement is reached by late October.

The bill was approved by the House of Commons on Wednesday, but faced trouble in Parliament’s upper chamber, the House of Lords, where pro-Brexit members planned to defeat it by filibustering — talking until time ran out.